As it turns out, moving to New Zealand for a period of time longer than 6-12 months is a fairly involved process. Who knew? A student visa, for example, is fine for 6-12 months (provided you can prove your studies will take up to that amount of time), but if the program you want to complete takes longer than 1 year, which mine does, there are one or two extra hoops to jump through.
First off, there are the medical examinations. Each applicant has to arrange for a doctor to give them a thorough inspection, and then head to a lab for chest x-rays which will hopefully prove a complete lack of tuberculosis. At around the same time, there are criminal records checks [for civil purposes] which certify that the migrant is of good character. As of the time of this post, the RCMP website claims that these checks are taking upwards of 120 days to complete.
So, "what's the problem?", you may ask. Well, there are stale dates imposed by NZ on each of these pieces of paper, and they differ. Your medical certificate must be no more than 3 months old at the time of application, while the police certificate must be no more than 6 months old come application time. It's not a big deal, really, to get these things timed properly but a bit of planning is needed.
While I'm feeling impatient about getting over there and getting on with life, there are moments where it feels good to have more time to digest this stuff.
Showing posts with label lists. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lists. Show all posts
6.1.08
4.1.08
the rough list
More for my own needs, possibly with the side effect of boring away any potential readership, I'm posting this list of things I think are important:
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- Save money. Lots and lots of money. International Student fees are generally astronomical. Fortunately, rent in NZ is less than half of what I pay here. Unfortunately, I can eat for 2 days up here for what a kilo of tomatoes costs down there.
- Talk to more banks and credit unions about student lines of credit, Canada's Lifelong Learning Plan and whether it applies to overseas study, and gather/absorb any other financial information.
- Talk to Canada Student Loans about eligibility for international loans as a mature student.
- Possible stumbling block: CSL will not be offered for an international program which is comparable to a degree offered in Canada, and Brock has just that. I ain't living in Niagara for 4 years.
- Get a Canadian passport, which shouldn't be difficult seeing as I've had one before.
- Convince Lincoln University to accept me.
- Spend the remaining time learning, learning, learning. Find local soil science courses, talk to friends in wineries about visits, anything to gain experience and insight. Its been a hell of a long time since I sat in a classroom, so it's probably a good idea to learn the lifestyle before meeting culture-shock and isolation on the other side of the globe.
-
- Save money. Lots and lots of money. International Student fees are generally astronomical. Fortunately, rent in NZ is less than half of what I pay here. Unfortunately, I can eat for 2 days up here for what a kilo of tomatoes costs down there.
- Talk to more banks and credit unions about student lines of credit, Canada's Lifelong Learning Plan and whether it applies to overseas study, and gather/absorb any other financial information.
- Talk to Canada Student Loans about eligibility for international loans as a mature student.
- Possible stumbling block: CSL will not be offered for an international program which is comparable to a degree offered in Canada, and Brock has just that. I ain't living in Niagara for 4 years.
- Get a Canadian passport, which shouldn't be difficult seeing as I've had one before.
- Convince Lincoln University to accept me.
- Spend the remaining time learning, learning, learning. Find local soil science courses, talk to friends in wineries about visits, anything to gain experience and insight. Its been a hell of a long time since I sat in a classroom, so it's probably a good idea to learn the lifestyle before meeting culture-shock and isolation on the other side of the globe.
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